The other day I was in the car going west, from Forest Grove to town. I knew that I'd be passing right by the only open water in the area, the sewer lagoon, so my binoculars were out, up, and ready.

No, I wasn't driving at the time - and this brings up a good point. Are we still allowed to use binoculars while driving? Hand-held electronic devices are a no-no, but did anyone say anything about the use of optics? I just assumed that we are still free to use binoculars. A word of warning - and this I learned as a child; don't watch the road through binoculars while the car is moving. It is a sure-fire way to get carsick. My parents always wondered why my brother and I suffered motion sickness during twelve-mile car rides.

But, back to the lagoon.

The quarry I hoped to see paddling around on the open water, was a Common Goldeneye - this would add to my list of spring bird returns. And as luck was with me, I spied a whole flock of Goldeneyes riding the choppy waves - the males resplendent in their black and white attire. Even a quick glance at these brilliant waterfowl bobbing in the muck chuck, brought to mind a question which always bugs me. What is so common about these ducks that they are named Common Goldeneye? These birds are uncommonly spectacular looking!

Of course this brings me to the bigger question; why are some birds stuck with the 'common' label? Common, in my dictionary, implies ordinary, numerous and less than noteworthy. Look at the list of birds with the first name common and it is obvious that they are some of the most visually arresting birds to be found. The birds in the Common family include the Loon, Goldeneye, Merganser, Tern, Snipe and Eider. Almost to a bird these are stunning birds!

Take the Common Loon. In Great Britain the Common Loon is named the Great Northern Diver. Everything about the Common Loon is impressive, its size, its call, and its remarkable plumage. There is nothing common about a "Common" Loon.

Another bird with an unfortunate appellation is Common Merganser. I've had people excitedly describe the exotic-looking colourful duck, and then I turn around and tell them they have seen a Common Merganser. They know they've seen something way beyond common, but the name just hangs there...common - common as dirt. So, in a quest to deepen my understanding of the label "common", I decided to figure out just what the word means.

Vulgaris is the Latin word for common. So, it would follow that the Common Loon would be called Gavia Vulgaris. The Common Merganser would be Mergus Vulgaris, and the Common Goldeneye would be Bucephala Vulgaris. But are they? No, none of these birds has "Vulgaris" as part of its Latin name. They are named Gavia Immer, Mergus Merganser and Bucephala Clangula respectively. What do these second names mean? I have no idea; but it certainly isn't common.

So then I had a brain wave. The bird names we use are probably related to birds first named in Europe. Sure enough, in digging deeper I found that every bird I mentioned above is found in Europe. They aren't just similar birds; they are the same species. But as I said, the Common Loon over there is known as the Great northern Diver, the Common Merganser as the Goosander, and the Common Goldeneye is simply the Goldeneye. Still, these are birds that we have in common and thus the use of the word common. But still, common is a misleading adjective.

I object most strenuously to calling any bird "common", particularly after a long winter when few bird species of any kind are present.

When a bird shows up, and bravely endures an early Cariboo spring, "common" is not celebratory enough. It is a momentous occasion!

I, for one, am uncommonly happy to see the birds and want to shout "Look! It's a flock of Spectacular Goldeneye!" Now, that feels better.